The present invention relates to a cooling device. The present invention relates more particularly to a cooling device having a subcooling system.
It is well known to provide a cooling device such as a refrigerator, freezer, temperature controlled case, air conditioner, etc. that may be used in commercial, institutional and residential applications for storing refrigerated or frozen objects, or for providing cooling or air conditioning. Such known cooling devices often include a closed loop vapor expansion refrigeration cycle having a compressor, condenser, expansion device and an evaporator for transferring heat from an area or object to be cooled to a heat sink. In such known cooling devices, a condenser is provided to cool the compressed refrigerant, where it may then be expanded to a low temperature condition for absorbing heat in the evaporator. However, operational efficiencies in thermal performance of the cooling device may be realized by subcooling the liquid refrigerant before expansion to increase the heat absorption capability of the refrigerant in the evaporator.
In such known condensers for cooling systems, it is generally known to recover the waste heat in the condenser by circulating air or water to the condenser where the heat from the refrigerant warms the air or water, which may then be used in other applications such as heating an air supply or providing a source of hot water. However, these heat recovery applications are often limited to specific devices, such as heaters, radiators, defrost systems for the particular cooling device, etc. having fixed equipment located close to the cooling devices.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a cooling device with a subcooling system to improve the thermal performance of the cooling device. It would also be advantageous to provide a cooling device with a subcooling system that provides subcooling when a coolant is available and may be operated without subcooling when a coolant is unavailable. It would also be advantageous to provide a cooling device having a subcooling system that uses a readily available coolant, where the coolant can then be used as a source of heat in other applications. It would be further advantageous to provide a cooling device having a subcooling system that is portable and adaptable for use in a variety of locations.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a refrigeration device with a subcooling system having any one or more of these or other advantageous features.